"Lotte’s… older sister?"
Prince Ernest wore a look of wonder. Lotte nodded, her smile never wavering, and reached out with her left hand after letting go of her sword.
"Yes, right over there."
Following where Lotte pointed, they saw the service entrance at the far end of the hall. It was currently the most chaotic spot in the room, swarming with the greatest number of golems.
Emerging from that fray was a girl wearing a light-blue dress and a white apron.
"That is Sister Reiko."
＊ ＊ ＊
"Father!"
Kicking aside the lines of golems, Reiko charged into the hall. Whether they were utility golems or ritter golems made no difference; she blew away anything that stood in her way as she raced toward Jin.
"Oh, Reiko! I thought it was about time you showed up."
Those were words of absolute trust. Reiko smiled happily and asked for her instructions.
"What shall I do first?"
Jin had only one answer.
"Protect the humans and neutralize any golem that attacks."
"Yes!"
Kicking off the floor with explosive force, Reiko plunged into the swarming golems. With a single swing of her right arm, a ritter golem was blown into pieces; with a flick of her left hand, a security golem was embedded into the wall.
Seeing this, Reinhard shouted, "Oh, Reiko-chan is here!"
"Wait—Reiko-chan?"
Elsa and Beena also looked over, their eyes widening in shock.
The golems that had been swarming the room were visibly thinning out. It wasn't just one or two at a time; they were disappearing by the fives and tens.
"Alright, now’s our chance! Schwarzritter, rescue the survivors!"
Seeing this as a golden opportunity, Reinhard decided to leave the golem cleanup to Reiko and put all his effort into rescuing the people trapped in the hall.
"Behave yourselves!"
More golems went flying.
Reiko had already defeated over sixty rampaging units, but no matter how many she struck down, more kept coming.
Seeing this, Jin came up with a plan. He gathered iron fragments from the scattered golem wreckage and focused his mana.
"Fusion."
He merged the metal into a single mass.
"Forming."
He began to shape it. He created a heavy striking weapon—a mace. It likely weighed around 200 kilograms. Finally, he applied "Hardening" to maximize its durability.
"Hey, Reiko!"
Even in the heat of battle, Reiko heard Jin’s voice and immediately rushed to his side.
"It’s a rush job, but try using this."
He pointed to the mace he had just finished. Immediately grasping its purpose, Reiko replied, "Understood. I shall put it to use."
She picked up the massive mace effortlessly with one hand.
"Well then, I shall continue the sweep."
With that, she charged back into the pack of golems.
"……"
"……"
Dominique, the envoy from the Celuroa Kingdom, and Stearena, a magi craftman from the same nation, watched the scene unfold. They were rendered speechless by the two anomalies before them: Reiko’s impossible strength and Jin’s lightning-fast Craft Magic.
Whenever Reiko swung the mace, four or five utility golems were sent flying at once.
"This is quite good."
To Reiko, it was no different from swinging a wooden stick, but the effect was devastating. Before the roaring mace, golems were swept away like scarecrows in a gale. Ten, twenty, thirty more fell.
After blowing away about ten more, the hall was almost entirely cleared of hostiles. Then, spotting the last remaining threat, Reiko took another swing.
However, that strike was stopped.
"That’s… Tauros!"
Tauros, the golem brought by Duke Blue, had intercepted Reiko’s mace with its massive tower shield.
"You actually stopped that? It seems you have some strength after all."
Reiko shifted her grip on the mace to both hands, drew it back, and shouted, "Can you take this one?!"
She slammed it into Tauros.
A thunderous roar echoed through the hall.
The mace in Reiko’s hands shattered, but Tauros’s tower shield and the left arm holding it were also pulverized.
"You are quite sturdy."
Discarding the useless hilt, Reiko faced Tauros with her slender body.
"This is payback for breaking the mace Father made for me!"
In that instant, Reiko increased her output to thirty percent. She delivered a full-body tackle.
The physical laws of this world weren't much different from Earth’s, excluding the phenomenon of magic. When a light object and a heavy object collide, the lighter one is typically reflected back—assuming there is no friction or resistance. Furthermore, one must consider the structural integrity of both parties.
There was Tauros, made of steel and weighing 250 kilograms, and Reiko, built from extremely rare materials and weighing only 33 kilograms.
Tauros’s velocity was nearly zero. Reiko’s velocity at the moment of impact was fifty meters per second.
A sound even louder than the previous crash rang out, and a smoke smelling of hot iron filled the air. When the smoke cleared, Tauros was gone. Only Reiko remained, calmly dusting off her clothes.
In the silence that followed, the survivors breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"Is it… over?"
Someone whispered, and as the realization set in, the survivors collapsed onto the floor in exhaustion.
Amidst this, Bruno, the royal ritter vice captain, pushed his injured body to move toward the King and the prince.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness, are you unharmed?"
"Yes, Bruno. You are safe as well."
"Please, come this way. We are gathering the survivors."
"I see. Very well."
Finally, the survivors were brought together in one place.
"Your Majesty!"
"Oh, Chancellor, you are safe too."
"I am glad to see Your Highness is well."
"Yeah, Lotte saved me."
Lotte, her body covered in wounds, stood respectfully behind the King and the prince.
The group consisted of the King and Prince Ernest; Chancellor Galueri; Minister of Finance Braorot; Minister of Magic Kelichdore; and the ministers of defense, internal affairs, and foreign affairs.
From the nobility, there were Duke Blue, Count Kuzuma, Earl Guarana, and Viscount Grieri.
Among the guests were Reinhard, Elsa, the Celuroa envoy Dominique, and Stearena.
The gathered magi craftmen included Yaruidare, Jade Nephroi, Gladia Hampton, and Bauthes.
The captain and vice captain of the royal ritter corps were also present.
While some had sustained major injuries, none were life-threatening. On the other hand, the security guards and the members of the royal ritter corps had suffered significant casualties.
＊ ＊ ＊
With the golems in the hall dealt with thanks to Reiko’s fierce efforts and no new ones currently charging in, the high-ranking officials of Egerea began to discuss their next steps.
During the conversation, Kelichdore, the minister of magic, spoke up.
"Lord Reinhard, why is it that your Schwarzritter and Count Kuzuma’s Lotte did not join the uprising?"
This was the question he most wanted answered.
In response, Reinhard spoke about the golem Albus, which had been used by Valentino, a criminal from the Kingdom of Elias, and explained the methods used. He mentioned that this information should have already been relayed to the appropriate channels in both Elias and Egerea. He concluded by explaining that his Schwarzritter had been modified to be immune to external magical interference.
"I have heard nothing of such a golem. The report must have been stalled somewhere," the minister of magic muttered, falling into a grim silence.
Just then, Jin approached with Reiko following behind.
"Oh, Jin! Lady Reiko too! You saved us!"
Reinhard went to greet Jin. Count Kuzuma also spoke.
"Jin, the Lotte you built defended His Majesty and His Highness magnificently. You have my gratitude!"
Hearing this, Jin blinked in surprise. "Eh? Lotte did?"
Looking around, he saw Lotte standing toward the back, positioned behind the King and the prince.
Upon hearing Jin’s name, the King spoke.
"Oh, so you are the magi craftman named Jin. I heard of you from Kuzuma; you are a truly excellent magi craftman. You have done well to create such a wonderful golem as Lotte."
"I— Thank you very much."
Being addressed by the King, Jin bowed his head. Unfamiliar with court etiquette, he figured that simply acting humble was the safest approach.
"And was it Reiko? That was a magnificent performance. Is she yours as well?"
"Yes, she is an automata."
"I see. I have many things I wish to ask, but first, let me thank you."
Everyone nearby was shocked to hear a king express such gratitude to a mere magi craftman.
"You’re Jin, right? Thanks to you, we were saved! If you can, could you please fix Lotte?" Prince Ernest asked.
At those words, Jin raised his head and looked closely at Lotte in the back.
The maid uniform she had been wearing was shredded and gone. Her right arm had been torn off from the shoulder. Her left hand was missing its middle, ring, and pinky fingers, and her entire body was covered in deep scratches and dents.
"Lotte, come here."
When Jin beckoned, Lotte approached, dragging her feet slightly.
Up close, the extent of the damage was even more horrific.
"You did well, Lotte. I’m impressed you protected His Majesty and His Highness even in this state. I am proud of you."
Jin spoke softly, gently comforting the broken golem.